Syllable Ride!
by DoomOverlord
Summary: Yuma in the Vanguard world! Aichi Sendou wonders where this mysterious stranger comes from. Faced with his own issues of disappearing clans, and burdened with the task of protecting Cray once more, Aichi tries to master his own Gold Paladins while figuring out the secret behind Yuma and his Syllables. United Sanctuary just got a little ZeXal. Kattobingu da, Vanguard!
1. Welcome, Syllable Rider

**Beginning Note: Hi, everyone. I'm honestly a little disappointed with the Cardfight Vanguard section of FF. But that's not your fault. If the show doesn't gather enough fans or take advantage of its obvious homosexual undertones to create incentive for people to write steamy sex-filled fun adventures based (loosely) on the show, then Bushiroad is the one to blame.**

**Anyway, this is a story that I've been keeping in the back of my mind for a time now. Ever since Vanguard came out, I've connected the game to Yugioh in some way. I was a little surprised that no one had written some sort of fiction bringing the two franchises together. But this is my attempt at it.**

**I have not posted a story to FF in a long while. However, I have still been writing fanfiction. I haven't been satisfied with my other work and I will not bother posting it. As for any of my currently incomplete stories, if I have any, consider them all abandoned. The original computer containing my work on those stories was lost a couple of years ago, and I have lost all motivation to continue from there. So I suppose you'll just have to deal with it.**

**And now, finally, let's get down to the important part of what this is all about.**

**Kattobingu Da needs some Vanguard. Simple as that. Kamui Katsuragi is no Tsukumo Yuma, that's for sure. And as cute as it is watching the gay interactions between Aichi and Kai, there is still something missing from the show. For a card game show, Vanguard has a tendency to...get boring. It doesn't have the excitement of Yugioh, nor the unpredictable stupidity that is needed to keep a card game audience entertained. So let's get this show on the road.**

* * *

Kamui comes running after me as I walk out of the shop. I let loose a breath of relief I hadn't realized I had been holding. This new Gold Paladin deck is something I need to learn – and fast. With the VF circuit coming up very soon, I have almost no time to become a master of this brand new deck. Indeed, the limit break ability is an interesting technique. Garmore easily reached a threshold of power that many other vanguards would have struggled to obtain. But then again, Majesty Lord Blaster is also able to achieve that power, and another critical as well. Ah, there I go again. No point in whining about it. The Kageros and the paladins of the past are gone. If Gold Paladins are the remains of the Royal and the Shadow Paladains, then they are just as much my deck as the former two were. I may be slightly annoyed, and a little saddened that they aren't here, but I will just have to accept it and keep on fighting. What really catches my attention is the memory erase. I can understand why Kamui, Misaki, and the others wouldn't be able to remember. But why can't Kai remember either? He was given an entirely brand new deck! And a powerful one at that.

Does the memory rewrite have something to do with Psyqualia? If so, perhaps Ren remembers his Shadow Paladins. I'll have to investigate later.

"So, Kamui, ready to fight together once more?"

"You betcha, bro. I'm totally psyched to put this one in the can."

"I think you mean-"

I'm interrupted as I suddenly fall to the ground. Groaning in pain and confusion, I try to get back up only to realize the cause of my stumble.

"I'm sorry! Didn't mean to hurt ya!" The boy currently on top of me says. He stands up and extends his hand towards me, pulling me up from my position on the ground. I try to regain my bearings to tell him it's alright but he cracks a smile before asking, "Are you okay? Hope I didn't injure you or nothing."

"N-no, I'm fine. Thanks."

"HEY!" We both turn to look at Kamui, who is currently glaring at the boy who ran into me. A scowl adorns his face, twisting his normally playful features into a mask of agitation and concern. "Just who do you think you are? You can't run into people just like that, you know! How about the great Kamui teaches you to look where you're going!?"

"Stop it, Kamui-kun," I interject, placing myself between him and the new boy in an attempt to calm him down. "It was an accident."

"Yeah, I'm sor-"

The boy begins to apologize once more, but he is cut off when Kamui practically screams, "I don't wanna hear it. You!" He says, pointing past me at the kid. "Me!" He jabs his thumb at his chest. "Cardfight, now!"

"Cardfight?" "Cardfight?" We both ask at the same time. "Kamui-kun, we just met this person. Please be a little more polite." I give a small smile at the stranger. "We don't even know his name. I'm Aichi." Kamui scratches the back of his head, slightly embarassed, before returning to his firey attitude.

"I'm the great Kamui-sama, and I will show you my strength!" Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I simply give a small sigh instead.

"Cool! Nice to meet ya! My name's Tsukumo Yuma, and I aim to be the greatest duelist of all time."

"Duelist?"

"What's that?" Kamui asks, his temper gone in place of curiosity. "What kind of fighter are you?"

"Fighter? We say duelist where I come from," Yuma says. It is now that I truly realize just how strange he looks. His hair is mostly black, with red highlights in the front. But what's really eye catching are the two long red spikes that just jut up into the air, almost as if he had horns. On anyone else, I would have thought such a hair style to be utterly ridiculous, but somehow Yuma made it work. The red highlights complimented the red vest and blue shirt he was currently wearing, while the black hair served only to add contrast to his white, flame-tipped pants. An odd combination. He is certainly an eccentric dresser. Yuma would stand out in our town easily.

"There's that word again. Do-list?" Kamui says, feeling at the foreign word.

"Not do-list. Duelist. Do-Oh-list," I correct. Kamui's lips move silently as he ingrains the word into his memory.

"...Um, if you don't mind me asking, Tsukumo-san, just where do you come from?"

"You can call me Yuma. And I come from Heartland! Haven't you ever heard of it?" He asks me, his eyebrows upturned and waiting for clarification.

"Can't say that I have. T-then again, I never really did pay attention in history."

"History? It still exists, you know,"

Actually, I wouldn't – and don't – know. "It's not that. There are a lot of maps in history class. Don't they have classes where you come from?"

"Yeah, of course. But..." he says, a sheepish grin forming on his face. "I kinda sleep through classes most of the time. It's just so boring, right? Besides, I could be spending that time dueling." Well, look at that. Something in common.

"Yeah, I don't really like school that much either. The teachers used to pick on me all the time, but they stopped recently."

"Oh really? Why?"I could feel myself blush a little, my mind thinking of Kai and Blaster Blade. I glance at Kamui, who has gone back to staring at Yuma, probably trying to remember if he has ever heard of Heartland. Or maybe he just wants to avoid talking of history altogether. Yuma comes a little closer as he puts his hand onto my forehead. "You okay? Looks like you have a little fever," he says, worry crossing his features once again.

"I-it's nothing! Just...I'm...well, it's kind of embarrassing to say that playing a game gave me confidence. And now the teachers don't seem to bother me much," I say while trying not to sound too weak. If he had questioned me a while ago, I wouldn't have bothered, since I'm sure my Paladins would be more than enough to take him on. But these new ones – well, I still have some doubts. Aaaaaaaaaannnnnnddd there I go again, not believing in my cards. Sorry!

"Why is that embarrassing? It happened to me too! I used to be bullied a lot when I was little-er," I chuckle a little, "but ever since I got into duel monsters, all my problems seemed to just go away! It was a little overwhelming at first, but now I'm the champion back in Heartland!"

"Duel monsters? Champion? Are we really supposed to believe that? Just what kind of game is this duel monsters anyway?" Kamui seems to perk up at hearing champion. He must see this as some sort of challenge. What sort of training could be better for him than fighting a champion, right? Or at least that's what I think is going through that head of his. I find myself smiling at his antics, predicting he would soon challenge Yuma into a battle once more. But truth be told, I am also intrigued in this game Yuma has mentioned.

"Oh duel monsters? Only the funnest game of all time!" Yuma practically jumping up and down as he began explaining the game. "It's a card game that two people play. Actually, you can have more than two at the same time, but regular duels have only two people. And you have your deck, where you start off with 5 cards in your hand."

"Sounds like Vanguard so far," Kamui interrupts. I nod in agreement.

"Really? Anyway, then you start playing."

"What? No redraws?" Kamui asks.

"Redraws? Nope. The hand you get is the hand you get."

"What if you don't like a card in your hand?" I ask him, thinking it odd that duel monsters lacked a redraw component to its game play.

"Like I said, you have to be happy with what you get. I think it's exciting, since you'll have to decide the game's outcome based on your first five cards. Anyway, the first player begins their turn. You draw during the draw phase, and then you proceed to the main phase. Well, technically, there's a standby phase before that, but it doesn't matter since most cards can't do anything during that phase. During the main phase, you can use the cards in your hand or on the field. For example, you can set magic or trap cards, or summon monsters."

"M-m-magic?" I splutter.

"Trap cards? What are you talking about? And what do you mean 'summon monsters?' What about riding and calling?" Kamui demands to know, trying to wrap his head around the new game terms.

"Uh...don't you guys have anything like that in your game? No, I guess not, huh. Umm...traps and spells are cards that aren't monsters. Pretty obvious, right? But the thing is that they have special abilities meant to help you or deter your opponent during the duel. Here, let me show you!" He says as he whips out cards from a container on his belt. He begins rifling through his cards before a frown appears on his face. "What the? What is this? Hey, do you know what happened to my cards?" He whips out a card and shows it to both of us. I look at the picture of a robe covered, grey-haired man before looking at the clan.

"Looks fine to me. Although, I've never seen that card before. Where'd ya get it? Did a new pack come out?" Kamui asks, stars shining in his eyes as he thinks of new potential combos.

"More importantly, what sort of clan is that? I've never heard of the 'Syllable' clan yet. It seems weird since they seem to have come from United Santuary," I ask before Kamui can divert the conversation to combos and packs and eventually onto his Nova Grapplers. At any other time, I might have let him continue, but I am currently very interested in these so-called syllables.

"I don't know! One minute, I'm sleeping in my hammock, next thing I know, I'm over here looking at weird cards," he exlaims, rubbing his face in thought. Wait a minute.

"...Y-yuma-kun, how do you not know how you got here? Were you kidnapped?"

"Kidnapped?" Kamui snaps out of his reverie, and glances up at me.

Yuma closes his eyes and begins fingering the necklace hanging around his neck before opening his eyes and denying my theory. "If I was kidnapped, why would they let me go? Besides, I'm sure Kotori or someone would have called me on my D-gazer by now. Speaking of which, why haven't they called me yet?" Yuma says, reaching into his pocket. Kamui and I watch in fascination as he hooks some sort of device onto his left ear before making a 'tch' in an exasperated manner. "No wonder. No signal," he says before we can ask. He places the device back into his pocket before seemingly staring off into space.  
"A-are you o-okay?" I ask, unsure of myself.

"Me? Yeah. Just thinking. Astral said something about falling into a different dimension."

"D-different dimension!?" Kamui and I shout in unison. Honestly, you'd think this were some sort of poorly written fanfiction meeting if you were here. Which brings to mind the question: what sort of stupid idiot would even think of writing such a story? Ah well, whatever. We have dimension-crossing matters to take care of. "Yuma, what do you mean different dimensions? And who is Astral?" I ask, trying to sort the new information and also deciding between listening to Yuma or sending him to a psychiatrist. Okay, perhaps that's a little hypocritical. After all, I was once a warrior of Cray – or rather, I am once again a warrior for Cray, and that's a little far-fetched for most people. I should give Yuma a chance to at least explain himself.

"I'm not sure about the different dimension thing, but I can tell you who Astral is. He's the spirit living inside my key!"

Okay, maybe he does need to visit a psychiatrist. I believe in my cards, and I can imagine myself on Cray becoming one with the Paladins, but a spirit in a key? A key to what? His necklace doesn't even look like a key! "He's this cool dude who used to be annoying because he would interfere with my duels but we're good friends now!" Uh...no comment? Actually, if anything, too many comments. Such as 'what in the world?'

"Yuma-kun, are you -"

"You don't believe me do you," he interrupts, looking a little crestfallen.

"No duh! How could we! You seem like some kinda cool dude with a brand new deck and some thing and stuff but then you start blurting nonsense about different dimensions and duel monsters and keys! Come on, Aichi, let's leave this wacko and go to Card Capital." Good thinking, Kamui. Leave the wacko and tell him just where we plan on going. Nice job. Once again resisting the urge to roll my eyes or slap my forehead, I tell Kamui,

"Don't be so mean, Kamui. He doesn't look like he's lying to us." Turning to face Yuma, I continue, "Yuma-kun, would you like to come with us to Card Capital? Maybe we can look at your cards there and then figure something out about your current situation." The boy looks at me thoughtfully, then fingers his key once more before nodding yes. I ignore Kamui's gestures and walk towards Card Capital. Soon, both follow and we walk side-by-side. Yuma takes out his deck as he looks once more at his cards. Kamui trods along, a pout on his face as if he can't believe we are walking to Card Capital with some potential lunatic besides us. And I would be lying if I say I'm not surprised a bit myself. But this new clan, this new dimension stuff, and the invisible and possibly fake entity named Astral intrigue me. At the very least, I want to help Yuma find something out and maybe help him get home or wherever it is he needs to go. Kamui's grumbles fade away as Card Capital came into view.

"We're here," I say pointlessly. I don't doubt Yuma's ability to read, seeing as how he plays a card game which requires some sort of reading ability, but rather to take away the awfully awkward silence that had been cast on us since we began walking towards the card shop. "Yuma-kun, what do you say to a game? Just a friendly match to find out what those cards can do." The boy turns towards me and takes a moment before saying 'sure'.

"But I don't think it'll be much of a challenge. I've never played Vanguard before and I don't know these cards at all. Not that I'm backing out!"

"No worries, Yuma-kun. It's just a friendly game. I just want to play you so you can learn the rules. Besides, I also have to get used to my deck."

"Brother, what are you talking about? Aren't you already used to your Gold Paladins? You've never used any other clan before." Kamui pulls on my hand to get my attention, and I find myself stumbling for an answer.

"Uh, y-yeah! But I think – maybe- there's some new strategy or something to -errr- help me w-win my future matches?" The mask-tape lie comes out as some sort of unsure question, but Kamui just nods his head and accepts the hastily put together reply. It isn't entirely a lie; I am looking for some way to fight with these new cards. But I have to remember that the others don't remember. Must try to not look loony. Hopefully Yuma could outshine me in loony-ness. Yuma stares at me with a raised eyebrow, as if trying to determing whether I was lying or not, before shrugging his shoulders to himself and entering the card shop.

"Welcome, Aichi, Kamui. Hello. Welcome to Card Capital." Misaki greets, as usual. She quickly eyes Yuma up and down, memorizing his look with that uncanny ability of hers. Even after knowing her already for so long, it still amazes me how she could memorize anything with a simple one-second glance. If only I had such an ability; school would be a breeze for me. "I've never seen you around before. I'm Tokura Misaki," she said as she placed the book she was currently reading on the counter.

"Hi, Misaki!" I blanched. 1St name already? And without any honorifics. I look briefly at Misaki hoping she isn't too angry at Yuma. And while I see surprise and a little frustration in her eyes, she lets it slide.  
"My name is Tsukumo Yuma. And I'm here because my friends Aichi and Kamui told me I might find some answers in this card shop. Do you know anything about Heartland, or the number cards?" Yuma asks her. Number cards? What is he talking about? Just how more mysterious can you get, Yuma? Misaki blinks twice before speaking.

"I've never heard of Heartland before. Or number cards. Do you mean the series number of cards?" Misaki asks, looking at me for clarification.

"Yuma-kun seems to be lost, Misaki-san. He doesn't know where he is, and doesn't know of the Vanguard world," her eyes widen at that statement. "What's odd is that Yuma has a Vanguard deck, but even stranger is that he possesses a clan from United Sanctuary that I've never seen before."

"From United Sanctuary? The same as the Gold Paladins? Impossible," she claims, huffing a bit. "I know, and you know, all of the clans in United Sanctuary."

"Um, I meant to ask this before back when we met, but just what is 'United Sanctuary?'" Yuma asks as he makes quotes in the air.

"You weren't kidding when you said he had no idea, huh?" Misaki says before a small smile graces her pretty face. "To answer your question, Tsukumo-san, it's the nation your clan comes from. Or your supposed clan anyway. Which is what, exactly?"

"Syllables, apparently," I inform her as Yuma begins to take out his deck once more.

"Syllables?" Misaki repeats. Yuma hands her his deck and her eyes widen once more as she looked at the lower right hand corner of the card. She looks back at Yuma, then at me, and then back to the cards. Once she looks at all the cards and memorizes them, she hands them back to Yuma who stores them tenderly in his belt box. "I've never seen or heard of these cards before. But I can't deny what I just saw. Syllables from United Sanctuary. I'm sorry, Tsukumo-san, but I can't help you."

"Please call me Yuma. I was never a fan of honorifics, really."

"I noticed," Misaki curtly replies, letting out a small chuckle. I find myself smiling. She really should smile a lot more. But then I drop the smile as I turn to Yuma and apologize for leading him to an apparent dead end.

"It's okay, Aichi. You just wanted to help me, that's all. Thanks. So are you still up for that match?" His eyes light up as he remembers our little cardfight and I lead him to the back of the room towards a table. Misaki follows, obviously interested in the fight that the Syllable clan would soon show us. Shin comes back into the room, voicing his disapproval but Kamui, who had remained quiet and prideful as we talked amongsts ourselves, pulls him towards us. "...some sort of new clan..." is all I hear as Yuma and I set up for our match. I take out my deck. Yuma mirrors my actions and pulls the cards out carefully.

"Okay Yuma! This is your first Vanguard fight, so I'll explain how we begin. First, you take one grade 0 from your deck, and place it face down on your Vanguard circle. Imagine it! You are one with your cards, and they all have contracts with you. But your Vanguard does not only have a contract with you. It is your sole embodied in a warrior on the planet Cray! This planet is similarly to Earth, only inhabited by the members of various clans that fight. So are you ready? Did you pick your grade 0?"

"I assume the number in the top left corner is the grade, right?" I nod in confimation. "Yosh! I've got my Vanguard then. So I place it face down, got it." Looking at my field, he places the card face down in the Vanguard circle.

"Good. Then we shuffle our decks, and draw 5 cards." We draw our hands. Someone taps me on the shoulder and I look back to see Miwa attempting to talk to me.

"Miwa-san, what is it?" I'm a little busy here.

"Just wanted to inform you that your boyfriend won't be here today," he says through a toothy grin. I can feel myself blushing. I hear the others chuckling at my expense.

"Boyfriend?" Yuma tilts his head to the right. He doesn't look disturbed, only slightly confused.

"He's joking!" I quickly add, turning around to glare at Miwa and the others for embarrassing me. Miwa simply pats my head, tousling my hair a little and tells me to get back to my game. "Anyway, let's get back to what we were doing. Once you draw 5 cards, you can pick any amount of cards, shuffle them back in, and then redraw until you have 5 cards in the hand. And I will be reshuffling 3."

Yuma looked at me uncertainly, before turning to the left to stare at the wall for a moment. I suppose he was talking to that invisible spirit, Astral, because he shrugged and reshuffled 1 card back into his deck.

"Okay. Next, we flip over our face down cards on the field and say, 'Stand up, Vanguard' or something like that." We flip over our vanguards.

"Let's do this," Yuma says, grinning at me.

"Right then. I'll take the first turn, Yuma!" I say as I recall to mind how Kai first taught me the rules of the game. I ride first, Yuma!

* * *

**Hope you guys like it so far. I know I am. This story has been plaguing me for quite some time, so it's about time I get it out of my head and onto . I know there have been some of you out there awaiting a yugiohXvanguard fic, and here it is. **

**Before any of you ask:**

**Yes, this will be focused on Vanguard the card game. Yugioh (GX, 5ds, ZeXal) have enough fiction written about them. And as such, have enough duels written as well. Vanguard deserves some attention.**

**Why? Vanguard is a fun game. If any of you guys play Yugioh, you'll notice that the game is going down in the fun factor. Especially the recent formats, which have been completely stupid and unfair to many people. Vanguard is a game that anyone can play without having to learn extensive rulings or factor stupid misplays. I hope Vannguard never gets to the point where you spend half the duel arguing over rules or waiting for your opponent to end their loop, **

**I have been playing a ton of Vanguard in the past few months. **

**Why Yuma? Because Yugi won't cut it. Because I hate Jaden. Because synchro monsters ruined the game. And because Yusei is a D-wheeler and I can't fit that into Vanguard. Yuma is a good protaganist. I don't get why people hate on him so much. Yugi was just as much of a scrub as Yuma was. And they both have spirits on necklaces that they wear. And they both make friends out of dueling. So why does Yuma get more hate? Is it because his show is better animated? Or because people just need to bitch that 5ds ended? Idk. I don't like Jaden. This probably has to do with growing up with the English dub, but I just can't stand him. The only good thing about Jaden is the Yaoi fanfic he inspires that revolve around him. I love Yusei, but he won't fit into Vanguard. Too pro for what we're doing. Plus Riding Duels / Cardfights don't mix. But if someone does manage to create an awesome momentum-avatar adventure of fun, I will be impressed. **

**Yuma's vanguard deck will be Syllables. And he will use the numbers. **

**Yuma comes in just after he saves the world. He's lost to Kaito already, though. Maybe that happened in the same day. Don't remember. Whatevs.**

**Update schedule? Don't have one. Just gotta wait for it, I guess. I'll write whenever I'm not procrastinating on my homework. Speaking of my homework, I have a huge term paper along with 2 other essays and a project due in a couple of weeks. ...Fun...**

**Duel disks? I am currently thinking on it. I had Yuma show the D-gazer, but his duel pad won't be shown until later. I might give Aichi and the others D-pads as well, but I need to find some way to fit that in. This might be a little spoiler, but there is a scene later on where Aichi will be be cardfighting for his soul. It'd be much more exciting if they were playing somewhere odd, instead of in the middle of the stadium. **

**That's all for now. Sorry for OOC-ness. I'm bad at writing. Even so, a little R&R goes a long way. So make sure to review. And give ideas / constructive criticism. See ya.**


	2. First Ride

**Note: This story is almost writing itself. Almost.**

**Enjoying the story so far. During the sleep time I got and in between the bathroom and breakfast, I started working things out for this story. Now I have a general direction I want to head in, and hopefully I'll be able to do just that. So why don't we just drop down and resume our journey?**

**Kattobingu da, Ore!**

* * *

"I ride first!"

"Ride?" I look up at Yuma and find an uncertain look on his face.

"It's when we place a card over our Vanguards. After the draw phase, you enter the ride phase. In this phase, you can place one Vanguard with a grade level equal to or one higher than the one you currently have. Since we start at 0, we can upgrade to grade 1 during our first turns."

"Riding, huh. Sounds sort of like overlaying," he says, deep in thought. I scratch the side of my face absentmindedly.

"I guess you also stack cards as warriors in your game?" I say, although it ends up coming out as a half-question, half-sentence.

"Yeah, but not for all of them. Only certain monsters require overlaying."

"Okay then. After the ride phase, we enter our main phase. During this phase you can activate effects or call rearguards to aid in your attack," I demonstrate by calling another Knight of Elegant skills, Gareth, and by activating Little Fighter, Cron's ability to move to the rearguard circle. "Normally, after this, we enter the battle phase, but the first player cannot attack. So it is your turn, Yuma-kun."

"I draw!" The boy draws melodramatically. Of course. Why wouldn't he be as eccentric a player as he is a dresser? "Ride phase, right?" I nod. "Cool! I ride my good friend, Gogogo Golem!" Yuma slaps the card on top of his Kurivolt. "Then, I can activate Kurivolt's effect. When I ride a Syllable on top of it, I can call it to the rearguard." He moves it directly behind Gogogo Golem. "Now battle! I attack your mons-"

"Slow down there, kid!" Miwa butts in to the battle. "Let Aichi show you how the battle phase works." I smile as Yuma sits back down and waits for my instructions.

"It's not that difficult. You can attack with any of the cards in the first row. But the cards in the back are important too. They can boost your attacking unit and give them a power increase equal to their attack. So if you were to attack me with Gogogo Golem, I'd have 5000 Power coming my way. But if you boost it with Kurivolt and add its 3000 Power to Gogogo Golem, it would be at 8000 power, which increases the percentage of you getting in the hit," I briefly explain.

"Okay. More power is better. Got it."

"When you attack, you put the unit and boosting unit to rest. So switch them sideways to indicate they're at rest." Yuma follows the instructions, and once again declares his attacks on my Vanguard. "Alright, Yuma, let me show you something now. You can only deal damage when you attack the Vanguard. The limit is 6. Once you have 6, you lose."

"Only 6? It's not at all like life points. Aw man," he pouts slightly as the people currently surrounding the table frown slightly at 'life points.' I can only assume that duel monsters calculated damage differently. I also take a brief glance at everyone around us. Not surprisingly, it seems this match has acquired a bit of attention. Misaki, Miwa, Kamui, and Shin are still there watching, but 5 others have joined. Probably more on the way.

"Yes, Yuma-kun. Only 6 damage. When the attacking unit has Power equal to or greater than the unit it is attacking, then the attack goes through. If the attacked unit is a rearguard, then that unit is retired and placed in the Drop Zone. If the attacked unit is the Vanguard, you take 1 damage instead. You take the top card of your deck, look for a trigger, and then send it face up to your damage zone."

"Okay, I get it now. But what's a trigger?" I hear groans come from all around me. 'This guy must be living under a rock' and 'Who is this kid' echo throughout the small store.

"I'll explain later, when we check into one. More importantly, the attacked player can call units from their hand to Guard against the attack. Only grade 0's and grade 1's can be called from the hand to Guard. Grade 2's must be on the forward rearguard circles in order to intercept. Grade 3's can't defend at all. And I will guard against your 8000 Power with a 5000 shield, which brings your units Power down to 3000.

"Is that all?" Yuma asks as he stores away the rules of the game.

"No. When the Vanguard attacks, you perform a drive check. You draw the top card of your deck, look for a trigger, and then add it to your hand."

"Triggers again, huh. They must be important. Hopefully we'll see one later," he comments as he performs his check and reveals no trigger.

"No damage. My move. Draw." I drew into a Player of the Holy Bow, Viviane. With no damage to use her effect, I guess I'll use her later. "Ride! Knight of Superior Skills, Beaumains! This is a Grade 2, Yuma-kun. I call Sleygal Sword, another Grade 2, besides my Vanguard. And now, let us proceed to the battle phase. With a boost from Cron, I attack your Vanguard with Beaumains. Will you guard?"

"You betcha! I guard with Gagaga Gardna! 10000 Shield coming your way, Aichi!" Yuma seems to be getting into the groove of the game.

"Drive check! No trigger. Now I'll attack with Sleygal Sword, boosted by Tron."

"No need to guard that one." He reveals one card from the top of his deck before sending it to the damage zone.

"Now then, it's my move! Draw! Now, I ride my faithful friend, Gagaga Girl! Nice, huh! Then I'll call Card Car D! And activate his effect. By tributing him, I can draw two cards from my deck! But then I won't be able to attack this turn. Draw!" Tributing? I suppose Yuma simply can't drop his old lingo for the Vanguard terms. Although it's not difficult to understand him. "Look what I drew, Aichi! I call another Card Car D and activate its effect as well!" Impressive. He's not only replenishing his hand, but also thinning it out. I wonder what card he's waiting for. "Now then, I'll summon the grade 2 Gogogo Giant and activate his effect! When he hits the field, I can special summon one Gogogo monster from my graveyard or soul in defense mode! Or rest, as you guys would say. However, I won't be able to attack this turn. Not a problem, since Card Car D already took effect. With that, I'll end my turn, Aichi."

A general murmur goes throughout the crowd. Many of them are probably pondering the same things I'm going over in my head. Graveyard? Special summon? Defense mode? This game – this duel monsters is proving very interesting, and I haven't even seen it yet. All I've heard are vague key words that Yuma spouts unconsciously. I bet he doesn't even realize he's using duel monster terms when he's playing Vanguard. But still, even more curious is his ability. He says he's never played this game before, but he isn't making the typical mistakes a beginner usually makes. His hand isn't used up; he filled it back up in fact, and not only that, but he piggybacked on the negative effect of Card Car D to pretty much bypass the negative drawback of Gogogo Giant. Does he – no...I hope for his sake that Yuma hasn't fallen to the powers of Psyqualia. Although I'm not sensing any malicious intent from the boy sitting across from me. Perhaps it's simply natural skill. He seems to be plenty in tune with his old cards, so maybe that bond carried over to his new deck? It seems to be the only logical explanation aside from Psyqualia. Oh well. Better get on with it.

"My move. Stand and Draw. Now watch Yuma-kun. I ride! A Grade 3! Great Silver Wolf, Garmore! This is usually what people aim for, Yuma-kun."

"People usually aim for a Grade 3? Why? It has the same attack as your previous Vanguard. Do they have some sort of ability?"

"Yes, Yuma-kun. Grade 3's have a special ability unique to them that aids a player immensely. I call to my field Sacred Guardian Beast, Nemean Lion along with Sleygal Sword! Then I'll also call Little Battler, Tron, and Player of the Holy Axe, Nimue! With the boost from Nimue, Garmore has 1700 damage. Will you guard, Yuma-kun?"

"17000 Power? Not bad. Uh...no guard!" He says, looking briefly at his hand before turning to face the wall again. Maybe this was just a waste of time. Maybe Yuma really was just a nut-case. I hope not. Kamui would gloat about me trusting a psycho for a long time. I'd probably never hear the end of it.

"If you think that's bad, wait until you see this. Grade 3's are important not only because of their high attack strength and abilities. They also have the unique power of being able to drive check twice! Which means I get to add 2 cards to my hand instead of 1. So this is the first one." I reveal a second Great Silver Wolf, Garmore. "And now for the second." I reveal a Flame of Victory. "Yes. I got a trigger.

"The boy here doesn't know what that is, Aichi," someone interrupts. Not going to bother finding out who. This is getting fun.

"I was getting to that. Triggers are special units that have effects that activate during a drive or damage check. You just look at the top right corner of a card for an emblem. If it's there, you have a trigger unit. All triggers have the effect of giving +5000 Power to a Unit on your field. This one in particular is a critical trigger unit, which means it also has the additional ability of giving one unit on my field an extra critical. And I give the +5000 to my Nemean Lion, and the extra critical to Garmore. You take two damage, Yuma-kun."

"Two damage? Does that mean two checks, as well?" He asks. Good to see he's paying attention.

"Yes." He reveals the top two cards of his deck before placing them both into the damage zone. "Now I attack with Nemean Lion, boosted by Tron. Tron's ability activates. Since I have more rearguards then you, he gains power to give Nemean Lion a +10000 boost instead." Yuma doesn't guard against this attack. He places one more card into his damage zone. 4 damage so far. Is he weak? Or are the Gold Paladins simply very powerful? No, I doubt Yuma's weakness. His demonstration before proves that he's not just a regular player. What sort of play can I expect from a supposed dimensional traveler?

"Now then, Sleygal Sword, attack the Vanguard!" Yuma guards with 10000 shield and negates the battle.

"Alright then. My turn! And I will draw!" Yuma then begins to act strangely. He closes his eyes and begins nodding a couple of times while whispering something under his breath. Could he be speaking with that Astral entity? "Well, I certainly understand why Grade 3's are so strong. But I've got a Grade 3 of my own, and it's a doozy. This card was given to me by Astral himself, so there's now way you'll get past it! Kattobingu Da, Ore! Ride! Number 39: Emperor of Hope! It is at this moment that the effect of my Gagaga girl activates. Whenever I overlay her with a Number card, I can pick one Vanguard on the field and reduce its attack equal to half of the Attack of the Vanguard I just rode. So Hope's 10000 attack makes your Garmore's attack turn to 5000 for this turn!"

"Wow, what a powerful effect!"

"Yes, it is. However, there is a drawback. This turn, all my units lose their special abilities, such as twin drive," he explains. Not much of a drawback. Reducing my Vanguard's Power to 5000 this turn puts me at a grave disadvantage. I'll need to devote more cards to guarding. The only plus side is he loses twin drive. But speaking of which, what sort of skill does his Emperor of Hope have? And what other sort of Numbers does Yuma hold within his deck? And what did he mean when he said Astral gave him that card? Yuma seems to have as much of a bond to this number as I do with Blaster Blade. I don't know why, but I can feel his trust in his cards is as strong as my own. And if he can trust his Vanguard deck so quickly, why can't I trust my Gold Paladins yet?

"Is there a problem, Aichi?" He asks.

"N-not at all,Yuma-kun. Please proceed." No, no problem at all. Except my old clan is gone and I'm stuck with the remainders and I have to stop some evil forces that's about to destroy Cray. My life is just dandy. Oh, why must I always appear so weak on the outside? If only I had the trust and confidence...

"Call! Achacha Archer! This Grade 1 unit gives +5000 attack on the turn it is summoned. Perfect for its original 6000 attack!" Hmm. 5000 Power Vanguard, and he's still powering up against me. Definitely taking some damage this turn. Should I be worried? The score is currently 0-4 in my favor. Perhaps I'm worrying too soon. "But that's not all! I activate Kurivolt's effect! By removing one exceed material -"

"Exceed material?" the whole room echoes. "What's he talking about?"

"Kid, that's the soul!""

"Yeah, did you grow up under a rock!"

"Where did you come from, horn boy?"

"Can I get your vest?"

Various shouts issue from many people. I glance around me again and I'm slightly astonished that there are so many people. The audience of 8 has easily doubled, perhaps a little more. I won't take the time and trouble to count. I can certainly understand why they're here. I've never seen an Emperor of Hope before. But these Number cards must be powerful if he's only at Number 39. What other powerful Numbers are there?

"Enough guys, let them play," Miwa takes control of the situation quickly.

"Right, the soul! Hehe, my bad," Yuma says as he scratches the back of his head. "Anyway, I pay the cost and remove one card from the soul and then I can special sum – I mean, superior call another Kurivolt from my deck! And so I enter my battle phase! With a boost from Kurivolt, Achacha Archer attacks your Vanguard!"

"11000 Power plus 3000 power huh? I can guard that," I begin.

"Not so fast! I activate Kurivolt's effect! For every other Kurivolt on my field, during my battle phase only, he gains an additional 3000 attack! So it's really 17000 Power!"

"No way!" What an incredible technique. At the mere cost of one soul card, he can superior ride a Kurivolt from his deck, and then power up his monsters during the battle phase. Syllables are powerful indeed.

"Yes way! Will you guard?" He grins gleefully at me.

"No guard!"

"Yatta! One damage!" Yuma almost dances in his seat. Repressing the urge to join him in his goofy splendor, I reveal the top card of my deck. No trigger. "Alright buddy, get set to get decked! 'Cause there's more coming to ya! With a boost from Gogogo Golem, I attack with Gogogo Giant!"

"I'll guard this one, Yuma-kun." I slap the Flame of Victory I drive checked earlier onto the Guardian circle, as well as intercepting with Sleygal Sword, which reduces Gogogo Giant's power to 0. Safe for now. Have to watch for the Vanguard now.

"Here we go! Emperor of Hope, with the boost from Kurivolt, attack his Vanguard!"

"No guard," I say after deciding to save the perfect guard in my hand for a later time, should it ever come about.

"Drive check! And...I get a draw trigger! So I guess that means I draw, right?"

"Right. You draw 1 card, and add 5000 power to one unit on your field. Now I damage check." I reveal the top of my deck. "No trigger. That's two damage so far, Yuma-kun. But now it's my turn. Stand and Draw! I activate the effect of the Cron on my field. Counterblast of 1 and then it moves to the Soul. So now I look at the top 5 cards of my deck and then I add 1 Grade 3 among them to my hand. I add Battlefield Storm, Sagramore! Next I'll call Silver Fang Witch and activate her skill to draw 1 card!" I move two cards from the Soul to the Drop Zone. "Next I'll call Gareth. Now then, it's time to battle! Tron boosts Nemean Lion! Will you guard against 12000 Power?"

"Of course! Defend me, Zubaba Knight! 5000 shield is more than enough to stop your attack," a smug grin comes across his face.

"Go, Garmore! 17000 Power! Will you guard?"

"I'll do better." Huh? What could he mean be that? "I activate the effect of Number 39. When he is attacked, I can remove 1 card from the soul, and flip 2 cards in my damage zone and reduce the attacking unit's critical to 0 for this battle only." The crowd erupted into turmoil. What sort of skill was that! Emperor of Hope, a scary looking unit with some decent attack behind it, was really a defensive type unit all this time? I've never even heard of removing critical from another unit! Without a critical trigger, I won't be doing any damage.

"Drive check. 1st check...2nd check." No triggers revealed. "Not bad, Yuma. But I still have one attack. With a boost from Witch, I attack with Gareth."

"Simple to guard against. I activate Gogogo Golem's effect! I can retire this card and reduce an incoming monster's Power by 5000. So that means your attack won't come through," Yuma says smugly.

"Are you sure this kid's a newbie?" Voices of disbelief once again course throughout the shop. I'm one of them. Yuma is playing as if he's a champion. And these syllable cards...they're definitely worth investigating. A defensive clan indeed, but it has the power to attack as well. He managed to escape the last turn with no damage whatsoever. Even so, I have the advantage. 2 damage against 4 damage is fine by me. I just need to make him waste Hope's limit break and then I can attack him freely without losing my criticals. "I really want that vest," some random dude cries out. I resist the urge to slap my forehead. I settle instead for a weak and awkward chuckle. Cracking a smile, I give Yuma the go-ahead. Despite everything that's on my mind and all the stress and concern I have over my lost comrades, I find myself enjoying this match. Yuma may be an inter-dimensional traveler from a place where Vanguard doesn't exist but he's doing things I've never seen before. And by the looks of many people watching our match, they've never heard of it either.

"Draw! And now, I call to the field the Grade 1 Bachibachibachi! With a boost from Bachi, my Gogogo Giant attacks your Vanguard."

"I guard against your 16000 Power with Elixer Somelier. So the attack won't go through."

"Hmmm...Hope attacks with a boost from Kurivolt."

"No guard!"

"Yes, critical trigger! You take two damage, Aichi," Yuma grins as he pulls his first drive check critical.

"Draw trigger. I draw 1 card and give plus 5000 Power to my Vanguard." I smile innocently at Yuma. This fight was getting interesting. And now the playing field was a little more even. 4 damage to 4 damage. Both of us were now capable of activating our Limit Breaks.

"Achacha Archer attacks. He now has 17000 Power with the boost from Kurivolt and the critical trigger."

"Yes, Yuma-kun. But I will intercept with Nemean Lion. Whenever this card intercepts for a Gold Paladin Vanguard, it gains 5000 shield which makes it bring down your attack below Garmore's attack."

Yuma sucks noisily on his teeth before the grin returns full force to his face.

"This game is AWESOME, Aichi. I can not believe we don't have this over there. Right, Astral?" He smiles to his left quickly before turning back to me. I ignore the crowd's confused looks and proceed with my turn.

"Stand and draw. I call a new Nemean Lion to the field. Now I'll proceed directly to the battle. Gareth, boosted by my Silver Fang Witch, attacks your rearguard Gogogo Giant. Will you guard?" He shakes his head left and right and retires his unit. "Now I boost with Tron and attack with Nemean Lion. Cron's skill activates, giving my Nemean Lion a total power of 18000."

"I'll have to let that go through, Aichi." He flips over one card, and reveals it to be a stand trigger,. "I'll give Hope the additional 5000 Power.

"Now, Garmore attacks Hope! With his skill, I'll transcend the limits! Limit Break! Garmore gains 5000 Power. With Nimue boosting him, that's a total of 22000 Power." Yuma looks undaunted.

"Not bad, Aichi. But even though I can't use my Limit Break anymore since there are no cards left in my soul, I can still fend off this attack. Triple Defense! I guard with two Gagaga Clerks and a Gagaga Caesar.

"Drive check! I got a draw trigger. All effects go to my Vanguard."

"Still not enough," I hear Yuma say. Miwa snorts besides me.

"2nd check! Not bad Yuma. You anticipated the trigger."

'Of course! That twin drive ability is pretty dangerous after all," he speaks through his grin. "Now it's my move. And it's time to finish this." Hmmm, I only have four cards in my hand. Two of them are Grade 3's and cannot guard. I have one Perfect Guard, but I need to make sure I use it at the right time. The other card has a shield of 5000. It might be able to ward off an attack.

"From the powers of Astral, an emperor undergoes a metamorphosis of power. Arise as the reborn king! Kattobingu Ride! Chaos Number 39: Emperor of Enlightening Hope Ray!"

"C-c-chaos numbers!?" I stutter. Everyone around me also stands with the mouths agape. Chaos number? What is he doing now?

"You thought Hope was cool, you'll like this guy. Let's show them your power, Hope Ray. Limit Break! I pay the Counterblast of 3. Hope Ray then reduces your Vanguard's attack by 5000 and adds an additional 5000 Power to 3 units I control. Call! Come out, Gagaga Girl! Gagaga Caesar! Boosted by Gagaga Caesar, Gagaga Girl attacks!"

"Guard!" I yell as I throw down the Precipice Whirlwind, Sagramore onto the Guardian Circle.

'Go, Achacha Archer! Boosted by Kurivolt, I attack your Vanguard!"

"No guard!" I say. It's important that I let this attack go through. The card revealed is not a trigger, but if all things go well, it won't matter. The damage is 5 to 5. The next turn will be the last.

"Now! Hope Ray! Boosted by Kurivolt, he attacks Garmore! Hope King Slash!"

"That's a very powerful unit you control, Yuma-kun. But I can't let that attack go through. Perfect Guard!" I drop the Sagramore from Cron's search into the Drop Zone, followed by Halo Shield Mark.

"Perfect Guard? So the attack won't go through?" he asks.

"Right, but you still get to drive check." Even if he reveals a stand trigger, it shouldn't make a difference. Even if he stands Achacha Archer again and gave it 16000 Power, my Nemean Lion would protect me just fine.

"No triggers," he reveals. "Your move."

"My go." Even though I am not under the influence of Psyqualia anymore, I can barely resist the urge to declare 'Final Turn'. "Yuma-kun, brace yourself."

Despite his valiant attempts to deflect all my attacks, Yuma is unable to handle the Heal Trigger that Garmore pulled. He sighs as the last card flew into his damage zone, revealing no trigger. I look up at Miwa and grin at his slightly agape mouth.

"That was a sick game," Kamui says as he regains his bearings. Similar statements travel amongst the crowd watching us. Yuma stares intently at his field before carefully putting them away in his box.

"Nice game, Aichi. This Vanguard game is very fun indeed. But it seems I still have much to learn." No problems there, Yuma. I also have much to learn regarding my new clan. I look around to see Shin shooing away other customers as Misaki, Kamui, and the others drag Yuma and me into the storage area.

"Alright, Yuma-san, we've got a few questions. Hope you don't mind answering them," Misaki began.

* * *

**And that's where I stop for now. Going to go work on my term paper. Also, not all the chapters will be Cardfights. This chapter was experimental. I wanted to see what kind of battle would play itself out in written form. I hope it wasn't too confusing following the duel. As the writer, I have no problem understanding my own work, but for an outside reader, you may have had trouble knowing what happened and when. It's happened to me plenty of times. I'll read a Yugioh fanfiction only to find out that the duels were too confusing to even follow. Unfortunately, in a cardgame show and its respective fandom, it is important to not only meet and care for the characters but also understand just what cards were played and what happened.**

**You may be thinking that I plan on making Yuma super powerful. As you can see, he held up a little bit to Aichi. But he will not be all powerful. Yuma was not the best duelist back in Heartland. He will not be the best Cardfighter here. He simply doesn't start off at base level because of his connection to both Astral and his own cards.**

**By the way, I could use some ideas as to what I should make the other Numbers' effects be. I know what Number 17: Revise Dragon will do. But transferring the abilities of the others to Vanguard and trying not to make them broken has proven difficult. Just deciding on Hope's skill was almost impossible. Initially, I wanted Hope to negate an attack just the way he does in ZeXal. But at the low cost of 1 soul, it was WAY too overpowered to give him an ability equal to a Perfect Guard. So then I added a Counterblast of 2 with it, but it was still way too powerful. I decided to instead turn the critical of the attacking unit into 0 because then Hope would have no problem fending off rearguard attacks but the Vanguard would still have a chance of getting a hit in.**

**I also spent an entire Astronomy class thinking about Hope Ray's effect. I really hope I didn't make it too powerful, but I figure it's fine, considering his effect can only activate when Hope is in the soul.**

**Anyway, suggestions are welcome. Reviews are definitely welcome. So thanks for reading. Until the next update!**


	3. Where are you from?

**Yeah, I'm back. Sorry for the long wait. Unfortunately, school is one of my priorities so I had to get all of that work out of the way. Now I can freely write without having to think about two term papers and studying for a bunch of tests.**

I've read the reviews I had and I appreciate the ones who encouraged me to keep writing. I would also like to thank Scarlet Weather who helpfully criticized my writing; he/she was extremely helpful particularly in pointing out that the POV does not sound at all like Aichi. I've had a week or two now to read over the past two chapters. And he's right. I'm not writing much like Aichi. I apologize.

I will do my best to keep him in character from now on. I will also provide a monster + effect list at the end of each chapter when it is required. So let's get on with the story. Thanks again for reading.

Disclaimer: Cardfight! Vanguard is not mine. -

This might seem a little strange to most people. After all, watching a kid with spiky hair getting pulled into a storage room by a silver-haired girl followed by a group of four other guys isn't something you can exactly call 'ordinary' or 'normal'. I can only give a small and nervous smile as Miwa-kun drags me towards the room as well. Upon entering, I shift my weight between my legs and observe the followings. The walls are barely visible thanks to shelves stacked with merchandise. An unorganized group of boxes lies against the back of the room. It is the only disorderly portion of the room and I suspect Shin-san to be the culprit. In all honesty, the storeroom would look absolutely normal if it weren't for the enthusiastic boy sitting in the middle of the room cross-legged on the floor with my friends surrounding him on all sides. I can feel the sweat drop already forming.

"So what's up, guys?" Yuma-kun begins. Even sitting down, the boy seems to be teeming with energy.

"We wan-" Kamui-kun starts before Misaki-san cuts him off with a wave of her hand.

"Let me." She coughs into her hand before continuing. "Yuma, you say you've never played Vanguard before." He nods in confirmation. "It...seems odd and unnatural. You weren't playing quite like most new players do."

"Yah, kid. You almost had Aichi there for a moment or two," Miwa-kun contributed. In the background I could hear Katsumi-san mumbling something about a number 1 disciple almost losing to a nobody. I ignored him along with the rest of the room as Yuma began to speak.

"I don't get what you guys mean. I didn't play like a new player? Did I do something wrong, Aichi?" Yuma-kun asks me, his sparkling red eyes staring into my blue ones. How different they are compared to my own. They...remind me of Kai-kun. Strong and determined. Yes, that's it. Confidence lies within those eyes. "Aichi?" Yuma-kun snaps me out of my digressing thoughts and I can feel myself blush slightly in embarrassment for drifting off.

"N-not r-really, Yuma-kun. You did great, in fact."

"Still, Yuma, you acted as if you've had a few games under your belt. You didn't recklessly use up all the cards in your hand until you found it necessary to do so. And you seemed to have an amazing understanding of the game for someone who learned during their first game," Misaki-san points out, raising a finger with each point. At this, Yuma-kun scratches his neck and gives a wide grin. I have a feeling that Yuma smiles often. Oddly enough, it seems to be contagious since I begin feeling my muscles pull at the corners of my mouth. Not that I'm adverse to smiling.

"Well, Astral used to always tell me I should save cards I need before doing anything else. Plus I learned duel monsters during my first game too. You could say I'm a hands-on learner!" He chirps.

"Duel monsters?" Miwa begins.

"Oh yeah! That reminds me! You talked about this game before back when you crashed into Aichi!" Kamui-kun shouts much to my chagrin. I hide behind a nervous smile as Miwa, Misaki, and Izaki raise their eyebrows at me. 'It's a long story,' I mouth back at them so they'll turn their attention back to Kamui. "He also mentioned Astral and some different dimension nonsense that I couldn't follow. Explain!" Kamui-kun demands.

"Which one first? Duel monsters or where I come from?" Yuma-kun asks him, turning his body to face Kamui directly. "Or Astral?" He adds as an afterthought.

"Doesn't really matter. We don't know anything about you, after all. Let's start with where you come from," Miwa-kun interferes, toying with his hair. Katsumi-san tries to pull off a bored look but it's easy to tell he's just as interested in Yuma-kun as the rest of us are.

"Alright. Well, let's see. I come from Heartland. I asked Aichi and Kamui but they say they've never heard about it before. Have any of you?" Yuma-kun looks around only to see all of us shaking our heads. "I see. In Heartland, I have all of my favorite things. My family, my friends, and also my favorite game. I suppose I can start talking about Duel Monsters now. But first, can I borrow some pencil and paper?" Misaki-san shuffles out of the room quickly and returns with the items. Yuma-kun accepts the writing utensils and begins scribbling something down. "It's a really cool game. Basically, both players play with a deck of 40 to 60 cards."

"40 to 60? Why is there such a range?" Izaki interrupts.

"Guys, come on. He'll never finish if you interrupt him for every detail," Misaki says, efficiently quieting Izaki. I'm a little ashamed to admit it but Misaki can be quite scary and intimidating sometimes.

"To answer your questions, they allow 40 to 60 cards because there are so many cards out there and different combinations that limiting a deck to a specific size would be unfair to some players. Anyway, you play with 40-60 cards in the main deck. Then there's an extra deck. In the extra deck are the fusion and exceed monsters, which are special cards that have to be special summoned in a certain way. With a bunch of...

A/N: Don't want to bore you guys with basic Yugioh rules and background. So I'll spare you all. For those of you who don't know how to play the game, it's not really important since I don't plan on bringing Duel Monsters into the story. But if it really bothers you, just read a rule book. Enjoy the rest of the story.

It's a lot to take in. Duel Monsters sounds like an oddly complicated game. I've never even thought of anything like magic or trap cards in all my card game experience.

"...You? A duel champion? Maybe that's why you're naturally good at Vanguard?" Miwa-kun speculates with Kamui-kun and Katsumi-san nodding in agreement.

"Yeah, but I'm not unbeatable," he continues. "I lost to Kaito right after my greatest victory, so it seems I have quite a ways to go." He doesn't seem down about it though. If anything, his energy level just rose after thinking of his defeat. The confidence that lies in his eyes shines even brighter than before as he gives me a toothy grin.

"So there are others just as strong as you? Stronger even?" Izaki asks, mouth agape.

"Yeah. I'd say Shark and Kaito are opponents I have to try hard to beat. They're super strong and good friends." Friends, huh. I guess card games brings people together anywhere in the world. Or perhaps even in different dimensions. Miwa-kun smirks and pats me on my shoulder.

"Sounds a little like you and Kai, eh Aichi?" He thinks out loud.

"Kai?"

"Oh, he's just Aichi's boyfriend," Miwa-kun informs him.

"Eh-Eeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" My face begins to burn as all of the blood in my body pumps towards my cheeks. "I-i-it's n-n-n-not! W-we're not l-like that!" I try to convince Yuma-kun that I am not in some sort of romantic relationship of any kind, waving my hands in front of my face in a desperate attempt to hide myself from everyone. Stop smirking Miwa-kun! It's not funny! My cheeks turn redder as the rest of the room bursts out into laughter. Except for Katsumi-san who seems to be in deep thought.

"Don't worry, Yuma. Kai will come by eventually. You'll get to meet him, especially if you follow the blue-head around," Miwa-kun continues, winking at me. I want to melt into the floor.

"It's all good. This Kai sounds like a strong guy if you care so much about him, Aichi," Yuma says. Oh no, it really isn't like that! At least...n-not yet. But this isn't the time or place for that!

"Y-yuma-kun, what about Astral?" I ask quietly, trying to change the topic and draw attention away from the subject of Kai.

"Hmm? Astral? Ah..." Yuma rubs his chin twice before continuing. "It's somewhat easy to tell but hard to believe. Astral...is the spirit that lives inside my key," he says, showing his necklace to everyone in the room. Had I not already heard this before, I'm sure I would have had the exact same reaction as the others. Disbelief was the only thing distinguishable on my friend's faces. "No, I'm not crazy!" Yuma yells, standing up as if in defiance. "I promise you he's there. You just can't see him. Most people can't really."

"O...Okay, Yuma. Let's say I do believe you and Astral is living in your key. Why is he that important to you?" Misaki-san asks.

"He's a really good friend! He used to be super annoying though. He would interrupt my duels and tell me how to play and he would call me Tonma instead of Yuma but I think I've grown on him! Now he's my best pal. He also was the one who gave me the access to the Number cards and started me on my journey to duel champion," Yuma states. For some reason, I feel compelled to believe him. Sure, it sounds absolutely insane. But looking into Yuma-kun's eyes I can feel the doubt within me dissipate. His confidence...his overwhelming confidence convinces me.

"Numbers? You mean like that Emperor card you rode earlier?" Kamui-kun's eyebrows are scrunched up in concentration. I can tell he's trying his hardest to understand.

"Yeah! He's Number 39. Currently, there are 100 Numbers out there that I need to collect. They're not just cards, after all. Each number is a piece of Astral's memory. I have about half of them by now. Good thing I didn't lose them when I came here. I don't think Astral would have been very happy if that had happened." Yuma-kun fishes out his unique deck box and takes out the top card. Turning it over he reveals a picture of a strong warrior wielding a giant sword. Hope. I know first hand just what sort of power it holds. What's astonishing is that there are many more Numbers out there. I wonder what sort of powers the others hold. If they're anything like the Emperor, then they must be a very powerful force to deal with.

"100 Numbers? Does that include the chaos number you showed us?" Miwa-kun asks the very thing on everyone's mind.

"Yep, 100 Numbers. Except I'm pretty sure the Chaos Numbers don't count in the total amount. He's an upgrade from Chaos Exceed Change, not an entirely different monster," he says.

"So you mean that all of those Numbers can upgrade!" Kamui-kun starts jumping up and down, excitement in his eyes. Knowing Kamui, I'm sure he's excited at getting his chance to battle Yuma.

"Can they?" Yuma tilts his head to the side. I think he's speaking with Astral or else he's just staring at the wall. "Uh...I suppose they _could_ all have upgrades. Numbers all have power and the potential for it, but whether they exist now or not...I don't really know," he finishes.

"Can I see your deck, Yuma?" Misaki-san asks. He hands it to her and she carefully looks through the cards. The room is quiet and I find it a little odd that nobody is making a sound. Miwa-kun, Kamui-kun, and Katsumi-san aren't up to their little mischievous mishaps. And Izaki-san does manage to behave himself less childish than the other three, but even he has his moments. I can't suppress the smile that worms its way onto my face as I think of all the shenanigans the trio often pull off. "Yuma, you haven't made any changes to this deck, have you?" She asks him. He shakes his head. She frowns a little. "I only ask because I've been thinking of fixing my deck and perhaps it would benefit you to do the same," she explains. Miwa-kun gives her a cheeky grin that she immediately suppresses with her trademark icy glare. It is that version of Misaki that can give me a heart attack. She can be a warm and caring person when she wants to be but on the other hand...perhaps it's best to just not think about it. "Would you care to battle me, Yuma?" That certainly grabs my attention away from my inner musings along with everyone else.

"Yeah! Let's do this!" Yuma does a back flip off the ground, practically shining with enthusiasm.

"Excited much," Miwa-kun snickers. Yuma-kun sticks his tongue out at him.

"Man, it feels good to get out of that place," Kamui-kun speaks his mind as we all file out of the storage room. I feel inclined to nod my head but I don't out of fear of incurring Misaki-san's wrath.

"Yosh!" Yuma yells out. Immediately, the crowd from 15 minutes ago returns and surrounds the fight table. "Place a grade 0 face down..." Yuma mumbles off, nodding every now and then. "I put back four," he declares, redrawing into his hand. "Stand up! Vanguard! Kurivolt will lead the way."

"Stand up! Godhawk Ichibyoshi!" I can already see Misaki-san planning her next move. Yuma stares at her Vanguard for a while before drawing.

"I ride Card Car D. Kuvolt moves behind him. And I'll end it there."

"Godhawk Ichibyoshi's skill. I look at the top 5 cards of my deck, and if there is a Goddess of the Crescent Moon, Tsukuyomi, I can superior ride it. And I will do so! Now I'll call a second Crescent Moon to the left rearguard circle with Dark Cat in front. Dark Cat allows both of us to draw a card. Will you?" Yuma-kun draws, of course. His smile grows a little bigger. Misaki-san notices the subtle change and frowns a little. " I attack with my Vanguard Crescent Moon!"

"I guard! 5K defense," Yuma-kun slaps down a draw trigger. The drive check reveals no trigger.

"On to my next attack, with a boost from Crescent Moon, Dark Cat attacks! 14000 Power total versus 6000."

"I guard with10000!" A stand trigger is placed briefly into the Guardian Circle before being whisked away to the drop zone.

"My turn now. I'll draw and then I'll ride Gagaga Girl! I'll call Dododo Warrior to her side along with Fleff. I activate his skill. By binding one card in my hand until the end of turn, I can increase his power by 1000. So now with a boost from Kurivolt and Gagaga Girl's skill, I attack with my Vanguard for a total of 16000 Power!

**Important Unit List**

**Number 39: Emperor of Hope**

**Grade 3 – Twin Drive**

**Power – 10,000**

**Skill – Vanguard Circle - Auto: [Cost: Counter Blast 2 and Soul Blast 1] When this unit is targeted for an attack, you may pay the cost. If you do, reduce the attacking units critical by 1. **

**Chaos Number 39: Emperor of Enlightening Hope Ray**

**Grade 3 – Twin Drive**

**Power – 10,000**

**Skill – Vanguard Circle – Act: Limit Break 4 [Cost: Counter Blast 3] Reduce the Power of an opposing Vanguard by 5000 and add 5000 Power to 3 'Syllable' units you control and lose Twin Drive during this turn. **

**Gagaga Girl**

**Grade 2 – Intercept**

**Power – 8,000**

**Skill – Vanguard Circle – Auto : If there is a 'Syllable' unit in your soul, this card gets +5000 Power during your turn. **

**Skill – Vanguard Circle – Auto: When a Grade 3 'Number' unit rides on top of this unit, reduce an opposing Vanguard's Power by 5000 and lose Twin Drive until end of turn. **

**Fleff**

**Grade 1 – Boost**

**Power – 6000**

**Skill – Rearguard Circle – Act: If you have a 'Syllable' Vanguard, bind one card in your hand until end of turn: This unit gains 1000 Power. **

**Kurivolt**

**Grade 0 – Boost**

**Power – 3000**

**Skill – Pioneer: When a 'Syllable' unit rides this card, you may call this unit to Rearguard. **

**Skill – Act: [Cost: Soul Blast 1] Search the deck for a 'Kurivolt' unit and superior call it to an open rearguard circle. **

**Skill – Auto: For each 'Kurivolt' unit on your field except this card, this unit gains 3000 Power. **

**Card Car D**

**Grade 1 – Boost**

**Power – 6,000**

**Skill – Rearguard Circle – Act: [Cost: Retire this unit] Draw two cards. You cannot attack until end of turn. **

_**About Card Car D, I plan on having Yuma take him out of the deck. As you can see, it's quite the negative effect. + 1 seems nice but in Vanguard, it's not worth it to lose your entire battle phase. So that means that Card Car D and Gogogo Giant are going to be gone very soon once Yuma begins fixing his deck and decides upon his winning image. **_

_**Also, Kurivolt may seem like a broken card. And he would be...if he weren't a Grade 0. Anyone who's played Vanguard for a few games knows that the ratio of Grades to each other is delicate. In order to benefit from Kurivolt's skill, one would have to play a minimum of 3 copies. That's two more Grade 0s for a deck in a game that wants to upgrade as quick as possible. Yeah. Kurivolt is gonna be leaving soon.**_

**The lists will focus on the plot-important cards. If I have the time, I'll add any additional cards. I just feel it more important to fully understand the strategy Yuma undertakes during his cardfights. So thank you, Bznboy, for suggesting I keep a list.**

**March 5 2013**

Alright, so I've been slacking off. But I've been thinking about what to do with this story. I went back and re-read this entire story for the third time, and I'm not satisfied with it at all. I will continue this story, but I've decided from now on that the story will take place in the third-person narrative. I'll fix the past two chapters to make them fit the new style. This is mostly because I found out that I have an extremely tough time writing in Aichi's perspective. It's not that I hate the boy or that I find him a dull character. I just can't seem to get into the groove of Aichi-ness. So instead of forcing myself to squeeze out words in perspective I cannot grasp, I will change the style and make it third-person from here on out.

I've figured out a few more Number card effects. Number 17 Revise Dragon has already been figured out. Big Eye and Illuminal Knight are also ready among others. I've tried to port over their effects as best as possible. Still, suggestions are always cool with me and will come into consideration when I write. Thanks again for reading this story. I'll try to fix it.


	4. One Box

**Welcome to the 4th chapter of this story. Changed perspective to 3rd person. I've also been thinking over some effects and cards I want to port over into this story. After playing Megacolony for the past 3 weeks, I've thought over how much of a balanced game (outside of crossrides) Vanguard is compared to Yugioh and I want to keep that evident in this story. I believe Yuma to be a good duelist. He's certainly improved his game since the first time we saw him and he knows his deck. So I want him to lose games not out of stupid things like being stuck in archetypes (friggin' Yugioh meta) but because of the lack of skill. For anyone who hasn't played Vanguard, you should because it's fun. And the triggers do not make the game just a bunch of luck-sacking. **

**Iizo. I've talked long enough about the game. Let's move on to the important stuff.**

**I've decided the path this journey will take. I simply do not wish to follow Aichi throughout the Asia Circuit because it was featured in the anime. Why would I bother copying those cardfights and putting them into text? Furthermore, Yuma's team decks will be much more enjoyable to read because they're made up clans. And that's the purpose of this fanfiction. To get these silly Yugioh Vanguard cards out of my head. **

**So without further ado, I present the 4th chapter. Thanks for reading as always.**

_

A couple of turns later, the cardfight between Misaki and Yuma is being fought valiantly. On Yuma's field stands the glorious image of the Emperor of Hope accompanied by his friends. The Goddess of the Full Moon, Tsukuyomi proudly commands her Oracle Think Tank supporters. With their friends in a tight circle surrounding their table, the battle continues.

"Ikke, Hope! Twin Drive's first check. And here's the second check," Yuma states, flipping over the top two cards in his deck into the trigger zone before shuffling them into his hand.

"Damage check yields a draw trigger. All effects to my Vanguard and then I draw," the silver-haired girl replies. The 3rd damage enters the damage zone.

"Go, Gogogo Giant! With a boost from Gogogo Golem, 16000 Power versus the Vanguard!"

"Too easy, Yuma. I'll guard with 5000!" A draw trigger is thrown into the guard circle before being placed into the drop zone.

"With a boost from Kurivolt, I attack with my rearguard Hope! 1600 Power once more!"

"Like I said, too simple. I intercept with Red-Eye. Now then, I stand and draw. I call Silent Tom."

"Not again!" Yuma whines after seeing Silent Tom hit the field again. It had been annoying the first time it was on the field and Misaki had protected it very well for a while. It took Yuma a while to rid her of it and now it appears once more.

Locked in an intensive battle, both players are immediately lost to the outside world. The crowd of friends surrounding their current table hold their breath as the cardfight begins reaching its climax. Maxed out on damage and with three cards in his hand, Yuma is at a disadvantage compared to Misaki. She has 5 damage as well, but with 6 cards in her hand and 1 intercept unit on the field, she can easily survive her next turn. Or at least, that is how a normal fight would go.

"Yuma," Astral calls for attention. Yuma hums in response. "We can win this."

"Ah, Astral. Let's do it. Kattobingu da, Ore!" Yuma raises his hand to the air. "I ask for your assistance. Kattobingu Ride! Number 16: Shock Master!"

"Number 16?" Misaki asks in wonder. Everyone else pays close attention to the new unit they haven't seen before.

"I activate its effect! I soulblast 3 cards from my soul to give my Vanguard a new effect. This turn, when my vanguard attacks, you cannot call grade 1 or higher units to the Guard circle. Let's go, Shock Master! I attack your Vanguard with 1700 Power!"

"Hmm. Yuma, all you're doing is forcing me to use two grade 0's as opposed to one grade 0 and one grade 1. It makes little difference," Misaki explains easily as she slaps two 10k shields onto the call circle.

"Maybe so, but I wasn't expecting my Vanguard to hit anyway. It's the drive checks I'm after now. First check! And a critical trigger. I put all effects onto my rearguard Gogogo Giant. And second check? Nothing. I attack with Gogogo Giant!" A total of 23000 Power faces Misaki. With no other grade 0s in her hand, she was forced to guard with 3 cards in her hand. Now she was down to 1 card and 1 intercept unit. Just enough to ward off his next attack.

"I'll congratulate you, Yuma," Misaki says as she guards his last attack. "You're already playing this game very well. But I'm afraid this is where it ends. You have 4 cards in the hand. I've already memorized what you have. 2 Grade 0s with 10k shield, 1 Grade 3, and 1 Grade 1 with 5k shield. Including your two intercept units, you have a total shield of 25k available to you this turn. Furthermore, you are at 5 damage. One damage will mean the end of the game for you. So you can't even take just one damage to lighten the load. I already know all three possibilities in which this game can end."

"Three possibilities? What does she mean?" Yuma asks Astral.

"She's really good," Astral notes, ignoring Yuma.

"First," Misaki says, lifting a finger. "I don't draw a grade 2 or 3 and you will win. Second," she added another finger. "I draw a grade 2 or 3 and I attack. I win. And third," she added one more finger. "I attack and you get a heal trigger. I lose. Keep in mind that the last scenario is most unlikely. You have 2 heals in your drop zone and 1 heal in your damage zone."

"So it all depends on this last card, huh?" Yuma says. "Let's see it then."

"Yes. We shall see who is fated to win this fight."

"My turn! Stand and draw." Misaki's lips tug upward in a small smile. "It seems you have lady fortune on your side today Yuma." She calls a grade 1 in front of another booster, forming a less than optimal 13k rearguard column. Yuma grins as he defended against every hit Misaki directed at him. After that, he proceeds to attack and claim his victory.

"Yuma."

"Yah, Astral?" Yuma is happily sitting down, eating his lunch of rice balls.

"We need to get stronger."

"What do you mean? I won just a while ago," Yuma replies.

"Yes, Yuma but you won by the skin on your teeth."

"Skin on my teeth? I'm pretty sure -"

"I mean, you just barely won. It was extreme luck that let you win. If you're at this level, how do you expect to continue hunting for the numbers?"

"Hunt for the numbers? But this isn't duel monsters!"

"Maybe so, but you're still able to use the numbers. It seems they've also been transferred into this world. Or perhaps they were always here to begin with. I can't say for sure which makes it all the more important to gather them. We don't know what sort of crazy effects the numbers could have on the people here. I wouldn't be surprised if you come across a power-crazed number possessed fighter across your travels."

"Alright, alright. I'll get to it. Just lemme enjoy my food, won't ya?"

Astral sighs – a habit he has rapidly picked up from hanging around the boisterous boy. Astral knew more than anyone the level Yuma is currently at. He may be a great duelist but this is a brand new game. It is almost like starting back at square one.

"Stop worrying, Astral," Yuma tries to console his partner in between bites. The grin on his face does seem to ease Astral's features, but the concern is still present in his face. "All we have to do is practice, right?"

"What we should do is ask for help. That Misaki girl seems to know what she's talking about. It would be wise for us to consult her not only in technique and tactic but also in the structuring of our deck."

"Our deck?"

"Earlier, she had said something about upgrading her cards. We should do the same and make sure we don't fall behind on anything. At least until we find a way to get out of this world."

"Let's do it then! Find a way to get stronger and catch all the numbers!"

Yuma walks back into Card Capital where he is immediately swarmed by the regulars. Somehow, he is able to sneak away from the overexcited group of kids questioning him about his clan and its origins to the back of the building with Aichi and Misaki. It seems the others had all gone for the day. Aichi, Misaki, and Yuma head for a pair of benches surrounding a table. Yuma sits on one side and his new friends sit on the other.

"You said you needed help?" Misaki begins. Yuma nods in response, taking out his deck box and placing it gently on the table.

"I need to get stronger. I know that the reason I won earlier was because you didn't draw a grade 2 or 3. It was luck. I don't want to win my future games just because of luck. If there's anything I can do to improve my skill at this game, I will do it," Yuma declares.

"May I?" Aichi asks, pointing at Yuma's deck. He also wants to analyze his own deck but for different reasons. Yuma gives the go-ahead. Aichi carefully handles the cards and begins organizing the deck by grade. Misaki looks over as he organizes the cards, making sure to count the grade ratios.

"Yuma, do you have any more syllable units?" Misaki asks.

"I have cards in my bag. Why?"

"Maybe we can fix you up with just cards you already have."

"Why? Can't I buy packs and get new cards that way?"

"I don't think that will be possible, Yuma," Aichi inputs. "Your clan – well, we've never heard of it before. There won't be any packs with 'syllable' units in it."

"I wouldn't be so sure, Aichi." The trio turn to look at Shin, the manager of Card Capital. In his hands is a sparkling box of booster packs. On the cover are the words "Limit Exceed."

"What's that?"

"It's – actually, I don't really know. I just found it in the storage room. I only found one. And I think I know just who it really belongs to. The cards never lie, Yuma-kun. These cards are pointing to you." Shin hands the box over to the young boy. Yuma's eyes begin to sparkle as he tears away the plastic covering on the box.

"Heya, thanks so much, Mr. Manager! This is just what I needed!" The green-haired bespectacled man gives a cheerful grin before returning to his shop. Yuma continues to tear relentlessly at the packs inside the box. Misaki and Aichi assist Yuma in opening his new cards by clearing the table of trash and depositing all left over covering in a trash can nearby. Soon all the cards lay on the table. Yuma fingers his cards, feeling the texture of his deckbox with each digit and fondly recalling all the adventures he'd gone on with the cards he currently carried, but it was about time he made new friends. His old cards have served him well. "Well, Misaki? Aichi? Let's see what we got!"

The trio quickly organize all the cards by grade.

"What do you want your focus to be?" Misaki asks, flipping through the cards.

"What do you mean?" Yuma wonders.

"Pick a path your deck will take. Will you focus on powering your Vanguard up? Will you rely on the power of your comrades to carry you through? Or will you relentlessly tear at your opponent's units to defend yourself better? Your deck needs a solid winning image in order to have any real shot at becoming competitive," Aichi explains. "Just picture it."

"Picture...a winning image? Well...I've always made combos off of my monsters. I don't really run too much destruction in my deck and all of my games end up with exceed summons," Yuma analyzes, more to himself and Astral than anyone else, but Misaki and Aichi lean in to catch every word. "My winning image would be strength through friends and comrades."

"He seems like a Gold Paladin kind of guy," Misaki agrees. It is a winning image very suitable for the young boy in front of him. For Misaki, Yuma brought about the words 'friendly' and 'loud' to mind. She knows the type. People who are loud and rowdy but somehow manage to amass plenty of friends, despite all their drawbacks. Living paradoxes, she likes to say. People who are predictable and rash, yet unpredictable and gentle. Tactless and stubborn, but loving and understanding. _If I keep on eye on Yuma, I'm sure to see something interesting, _she thought.

"Gold paladin, huh," Aichi quietly repeats as he clutched his fingers around his deck. He makes sure to not let Misaki catch on to his inner thoughts but inside he is trying to hide his own nervousness. He still had a long way to go before mastering his new deck. Unlike his original Royal Paladins, these new ones did not function in the same way. He recognized their ability to gain field advantage at costs that other clans would kill for but the luck factor of sacking the top card off the deck was not very satisfactory. He needs to improve his chances of topping a good card in some way.

"But I want to be play this clan," Yuma pouts.

"I figured as much. Don't worry. I'm sure we can make a good, consistent deck," Misaki reassures him.

For the next half-hour, they work on upgrading Yuma's deck. Astral peers at their progress over Yuma's shoulder, making sure to read and memorize all the skills of the units that went into his deck. It will help him formulate plans and strategies for the next time they face an opponent.

"Where are you staying, Yuma?" Misaki asks as she notices the sun setting. "I didn't think about it earlier, but you came from a different place. So you have no place to stay, right? Where are you going to sleep?" Yuma blinks twice before scratching the back of his head. It is clear that it is the first time the thought had passed through his head. Unheard, Astral sighs.

"I don't know. I guess I could find a nice place in the park or a box somewhere..." the boy cuts off.

Misaki and Aichi exchange looks, having a silent discussion while Yuma begins thinking of where he can find a place to crash for the night. Stepping down, Misaki gives Aichi a soft glance and begins heading back towards the shop.

"Good night, Yuma, Aichi."

"Good night, Misaki-san."

"G'night, Misaki!" Both boys watch the girl round the corner before looking back at each other.

"So..." Aichi begins, uncertainty wavering his voice. Yuma looks over at him, round red eyes staring deep into Aichi's blue ones and prompting him to continue talking. "I-I t-think we might – I mean, maybe you could s-stay at my place," he says, his voice getting softer towards the end.

"Thanks, Aichi. But I don't wanna be a bother," Yuma tries to wave him off.

"No!" Aichi yells a little too loudly. He shrinks back before continuing, "It's not a problem."

Yuma's face splits into a wide grin before he jumps to his feet. "Let's go then. It's starting to get dark." Yuma offers his hand to Aichi. The blue-haired boy finds himself smiling before accepting the handshake and heading home.

**Yeah, it's been quite a while. My bad, guys, but it's just who I am. Long wait can be attributed to all my school projects, finals, ACT, SAT, SAT II's, and of course, my damn laziness.**

**Uh. I started writing this chapter and then I left it unfinished. I picked it up over a month later and I had no idea where to start. Hopefully, it doesn't show too much. Summer has started so don't expect frequent updates. Still, I might squeeze out a chapter or two when I'm stuck inside on a boring day. I've figured out a little more about the 'plot' of this story. I know more or less the path this story is going to take for the next three, four chapters.**

Also, I'm sorry but I couldn't find a better way to introduce new cards to Yuma's deck. I just had Shin find a booster box for Yuma. I realize that I sort of wrote myself into a corner when it came to upgrading Yuma's deck but that is the only way I could have him moderately change his winning image without sounding too ridiculous. The obvious choice was to make Yuma visit Cardshop Psy, but I don't want him meeting up with Team Ultra-Rare until he gets into the Asia Circuit or makes his own team.

On another note, I wonder what everyone's favorite clan is. I know my locals currently focuses on Crossrides and Aqua Force (despite my opinion that Aqua Force's winning image isn't strong enough to work consistently). I understand all the hype around crossrides like The End and the hybrid-ride Majesty Lord Blaster, but that doesn't make Royal Paladin or Kagero my favorite clan. Let's pretend crossrides didn't exist. What would be your favorite clan? What is your favorite winning image?

My favorite clan is Granblue. I enjoy the consistent rearguard lines provided by a healthy drop zone. And zombie pirates are just too good to ignore anyway.

Until the next update, readers. 


	5. The Shark and the Horn

**I typed up a whole rant before this. I've decided to spare you all from that. Instead, I will tell you a little story about why I have no motivation to get back into playing Yugioh.**

**Recently at my locals, a group of yugioh players saw me playing Vanguard over at a table and confronted me about it. They were wondering just what I saw in the game and why I didn't play Yugioh after I told them I quit the game. I figured the best way to prove my point would be to show one of them up in a game. So I turned over to my friend and asked to borrow his deck. **

**My opponent sat across from me, unrolling his mat he had obtained from regionals. I remember smirking as I unrolled my own yugioh playmat, decorated with the Pepsi logo. We shuffled and then we cut decks. And I remember that I smirked upon drawing my 5 cards. **

**One turn later, I had Dracossack on the field, two tokens, 3 cards in the hand and a healthy graveyard full of dragon rulers. My opponent could not get past Dracossack in his first turn. Deciding it would be safer to wait it out, he summoned Number 25 to prevent the use of my monster. Come next turn, Dragon Rulers effortlessly made Big-Eye. He had wasted his effect on negating Dracossack. One turn and a bunch of unfair advantage later, I claimed victory. **

"**You see this deck? That's why I won't play Yugioh anymore. Because of the stupidly expensive shenanigans," I remember saying upon his defeat. **

**And that is my little story. Now, let's proceed to the actual fanfiction. **

* * *

"Yuma, slow down!" Aichi tries to keep up with the young boy running down the street. The direction they were heading in points straight at Card Capital. After a very quick breakfast where Yuma possibly broke records as he inhaled his food at an inhumane pace, the boy had demonstrated great interest in battling new people with his upgraded deck. Aichi looks back at his mom who is waving 'bye' at him from their door with a wide smile before dashing after his friend.

_**Flashback! Start!**_

_"Mom? I'm home!" Aichi called out before slipping out of his shoes. Yuma mirrored Aichi's actions. The lovely, young mother came quickly into the front of the house to greet her son before her eyes fell on Yuma. _

"_Ara, and who is this?" she asked. _

"_Hi, Miss Sendou. My name is Tsukumo Yuma," the spiky-haired boy answered with a wide grin._

"_Mom, can I talk to you for a second?" Aichi interrupted their meeting, flinching at his mother's short glare at his temporary rudeness before relenting and following her son into another room. "I-I need to explain something to you," the bluenette continued._

"_Is something wrong, Aichi?" she asked, the worry apparent in her tone._

"_Y-yes, mom. Yuma...well, he's a little odd but I think he's a good friend," Aichi began, beginning to ramble._

"_That's great, dear, you made another friend! What's wrong with that, even if he is a little strange," his mom replied, wondering what the problem was._

"_You see..." Aichi cleared his voice before continuing in a small voice. "He – due to certain events, he doesn't have a place to stay and I was wondering if he c-could spend the night here," Aichi informed, his voice getting quieter near the end. Shizuka stared at the wall, almost as if she could see the eccentric boy on the other side, before she turned back to her son and gave him a bright smile. _

"_Well, of course he can stay here! I certainly can't let a child sleep outside by himself, can I?" she replied, her motherly instincts and years of experience giving her a warm and inviting confidence that eased Aichi's nerves. Still, the boy knew that it wouldn't simply be as easy as letting Yuma stay. His mother was a smart one and she would want to know just why a young boy was out of a home with no one to care for him. On the other hand, it made her feel proud that her son had changed from the shy, isolated child he had been into a caring, young man. For now, she was content to ignore the details and support her son in any way she could. Of course, she would make sure to keep on eye on both of them, just to be safe. The two of them walked back into the room and looked at Yuma who had made himself comfortable on the floor and fallen asleep. Chuckling a little to himself, Shizuka gently shook the boy awake._

"_Mom?" Yuma yawned out, rubbing his eyes in a futile attempt to wipe away his weariness. Shizuka felt a small thump of pain as she witnessed the young boy call out for his mother, mistaking her for him. _

"_Sorry, dearie," she apologized. "But I can't just have you feeling asleep on the floor. What kind of host would I be? Aichi, can you show him to his bed? Use the guest room," she instructed. Aichi obeyed his mother's orders, guiding the babbling, tired Yuma up the stairs into the guest room where Yuma immediately plopped down into the warm, soft bed and began snoring. Before the soothing black of sleep completely claimed him, Yuma thought for just a moment that his hammock was still more comfortable. And then he began to dream. _

_Aichi heard his mother call for him downstairs so he tucked Yuma in before heading down to find his mother in the kitchen. He gulped slightly in fear before steeling his nerves. He had already known this moment was coming.  
_

"_Who is that boy?" Shizuka asked him. Her manner implied that she was just asking an innocent question but Aichi recognized the tone. It was the same tone all mothers used when they wanted to lure their children in by appearing casual and slightly uninterested but truly being completely serious underneath. And as if to confirm his suspicions, his mother gave him the same small but confident small all conniving mothers used when they were absolutely determined to interrogate any and all information from their children. It was one of the worst combinations of techniques Aichi had ever faced and he knew it was a battle he was destined to lose. He decided to avoid beating about the bush and informed his mother of how he encountered the young duelist. Shizuka listened thoroughly to her son's story without making a single interruption, digesting each new piece of information. As Aichi came to an end, she gave her son a funny look and Aichi felt the uneasy feeling in his stomach multiply once more. "Aichi, is your new friend...is he from a...well, is he a delinquent?" Shizuka finally asked. _

"_You don't believe me," Aichi acknowledged. He sighed. "I know it sounds completely ridiculous, mom, but I believe him. You can ask him yourself. I'm not making this stuff up."_

"_But another dimension? Do you expect me to consider that?" Shizuka retorted, shaking her head. Sure, she was a pretty open-minded person. But even backstories had to have a limit. And she considered inter-dimensional travel as crossing the line, not to mention having a spirit stored in a key. She considered her son's behaviors as he began defending Yuma. Sure, her son had never been the type for sci-fi. And the story would be very out of character for Aichi to have made up. While he had been becoming more and more social, Shizuka was sure her boy had not suddenly turned into a fan who spent hours and hours watching cheap science fiction movies. However, it seemed she wasn't going to get anything else out of her son. He was sticking to that story so the only option left was to get information from Yuma. She became increasingly worried as she thought about the newcomer. If he was hiding his past, perhaps he really was a danger. Perhaps he had influenced Aichi to become influenced by...certain substances. She desperately hoped that wasn't the case. After resolving to keep a keen eye on Yuma and his actions, she sent Aichi to bed and retired for the night._

_In the morning, Yuma came tumbling down the stairs, bouncing in energy. "Good morning, Miss Sendou," he greeted as he walked into the kitchen and took a seat. "Thanks for letting me stay here."_

"_No problem, Yuma," she replied. This was her chance to get some information. Of course, if the boy really was hiding something from her, she couldn't be blunt about it. She'd have to be really smooth. "I hope you enjoyed your stay. You're one of Aichi's new friends, aren't you? How did you two meet?"_

"_Oh that? I bumped into him."_

"_What? You bumped into him?" _

"_Yeah. I was running down the street but I wasn't paying attention and next thing I know, I'm falling over and I land on top of someone. I tried to apologize but then this kid gets up in my face and starts challenging me to a cardfight," Yuma answered. Shizuka couldn't help but laugh at how the two boys had met._

"I assume it was Kamui," she hazarded a guess, thinking about the young child Aichi had described to her once. "Aichi did say he was a little hot-headed. So what else did you guys do?"

"_Well, we went to the card shop after that. I met Aichi's other friends and then we battled. Vanguard is actually really fun! When I get home, I'll see if I can make the game popular over there," Yuma continued. Home. The boy had mentioned something about home. Sensing a lead, Shizuka quickly took control of the topic._

"_Over there? Don't they play Vanguard where you're from?" _

"_Nope! The only popular game is Duel Monsters. And I'm the champion where I'm at! I'm the top duelist in Heartland," Yuma bragged, causing Astral to roll his eyes. It was another habit he had picked up on when he observed Kotori perform it countless times in response to Yuma's statements. _

"_Heartland? I don't suppose you could point to it on a map, could you?" Shizuka asked. So far, it seemed her son had not been lying. Or at the very least, he had simply been relaying information Yuma had told him. _

"_Can't do that," was the response._

"_Why not?" Shizuka continued slicing up vegetables, trying to appear cool and nonchalant._

"_I would if I could, but Heartland isn't on any of your maps," Yuma told her. _

"_What do you mean it's not on a map? Of course it is," Shizuka replied, attempting to act surprised. Yuma didn't seem to catch on to her acting. _

"_Well, it's not. I couldn't find it. So that's why I can't go home. I miss my family and friends and I wish I could just contact them and tell them I'm okay, at the least." The young mother smiled unintentionally as she internally 'awwed' at the boy. He didn't seem like a bad kid. There were no tattoos on him, no piercings, nothing. He had a rather crazy hairstyle and his clothes were a bit over the top, but he didn't give off the impression of straying off the proper path. He was kind and caring, as clearly demonstrated when he mentioned his family. The boy's eyes had practically glazed over as he swam in his memories. _

"_I'm sorry to hear about that, Yuma. We'll try to get you home as soon as we can, okay?" She offered as consolation. "In the meantime, would you like to eat some breakfast?" The boy's stomach immediately rumbled as Yuma thought of food. "I guess that answers my question," Shizuka chuckled, her sweet voice ringing delicately throughout the kitchen. "Can you be a sweetie and wake Aichi up?" _

"_Yes, ma'am!" Yuma marched up the stairs and hurriedly woke up the snoring adolescent. He laughed at how Aichi's hair was a complete mess before being reminded of his own odd hairstyle. "It's not weird! It looks cool!" he practically screamed as Aichi headed towards the bathroom to begin his day. Soon they both headed into the kitchen and took their seats. _

_**Flashback! Terminate!**_

Which leads to their current situation. Aichi pauses in front of the card shop, his hands on his knees as he pants and tries to catch his breath after chasing the energetic duelist. All the while, Yuma had been yelling about his new strength.

"Good morning, Yuma, Aichi," Misaki greets as they walk in. It is still pretty early so the tables are quite bare. There are only 2 other cardfighters in the vicinity, much to Yuma's dismay. Aichi tries to cheer him up by telling him there was another card shop close by that always had challengers available. As soon as the words leave his mouth, Yuma starts to leave, bidding Misaki a quick farewell and telling her he'll stop by later. Aichi silently apologizes for Yuma's behavior. Misaki simply gives a small laugh before telling Aichi to hurry up or he'll be left behind.

"Yuma, wait! You don't even know where it is!" Aichi tells him as he watches the boy head off in a random direction.

"Oops," he responds, scratching the back of his head and trying to pass off his embarrassment. "Lead the way, Aichi!" Throughout the small trip, both players speak of their decks and the current competition. Deciding to be a good sport, Aichi tells Yuma that the card shop they're heading towards is full of strong people, many who had competed in official tournaments and events. Yuma's grin only got wider as he heard that tidbit of information before quickening their pace.

"If you want to make sure you get the best challenge there, make sure to challenge Gouki. He's the head of his team and they've made it to nationals so you can be sure he's powerful," Aichi advises. He is glad the opportunity has come up to see his friend. Despite being a manageable walking distance, Aichi does not often visit. Aichi recalls that Miwa once shared his suspicion with everyone that it was because Kai was always at Cardfight Capital, much to Aichi's embarrassment. As they approach the doors leading into the shop, Yuma and Aichi hear loud cheering and shouts coming from inside. Looking at Aichi before shrugging and deciding he does not care, he heads inside. Aichi trails behind him.

"Shark! W-what are you doing here!?" Yuma asks.

"Yuma! Who are you talking about?" Aichi scrambles to get a better look and notices one table that has been surrounded by everyone in the card shop. Aichi looks at Gouki who is fighting against someone he has never seen before. It's a young boy who has purple hair. The boy's attire consists of a purple jacket, blue shirt, and black pants with black shoes. Aichi gasps as he notices the boy's eyes. They are blue but much different from his. They are a crueler shade, petrifying in their appearance. "H-he...that glare...it really is like s-staring at a shark."

The boy turns his head, narrowing his eyes as he searches for the voice that called his name. His eyes widen as he spots a certain reckless duelist. "Yuma!" The boy exclaims, his cool demeanor broken for a few seconds as he gapes at Yuma.

"Shark! I can't believe you're here!" Yuma states, delighted to see a familiar face in this new world. The crowd parts to let Yuma and Aichi get close to the table. Most of the crowd are staring at Shark and Yuma, thinking about what relationship the two could possibly share. Many are surprised to see that the cold, calculating boy was not as much of a loner as they had previously thought.

"Aichi!" Gouki shouts, trying to get everyone to quiet down and calling the bluenette's attention. "Nice to see ya! But before we talk, let's finish this game first! You wouldn't believe it, Aichi! But this guy has an amazing deck!"

"Let me guess...he plays a clan no one has heard of before?"

"H-how'd ya know!?" Gouki asks, wondering if the boy had developed any psychic skills since they had last met.

"Oh, it's nothing. Yuma here is quite similar," Aichi informs Gouki, gesturing towards the fidgeting boy who was almost jumping up and down in joy of seeing his friend.

"Let's finish this!" Shark commands, diving back into his cool manner and taking control of the situation. Sure, he might be completely confused about everything that's happened to him, but he was going to win. Aichi quickly looks at their field. At first glance, the game seems like it could go either way and Aichi is impressed that someone could push Gouki this far. But then Aichi looks at the confident smirk on Shark's face. He grabs Yuma's attention, who is too busy smiling with his mouth open at Shark.

"Yuma, your friend looks very confident. Do you think he's going to win?"

"Of course! It's very hard to stop Shark once he gets serious," Yuma answers, thinking back on his various encounters with the other boy. "Not even I can beat him without serious effort! And sometimes I lose despite whatever I do!" Aichi merely nods his head before turning back to watch the turn pass. Shark begins his turn, having survived the turn easily due to a healthy hand.

"I activate my vanguard's skill! By detaching one card from the soul and paying a counterblast of 1, I can increase its power by 10,000! Since I still have one card in my soul, Revise Dragon's negative effect does not come into play. Now then, I declare an attack with my vanguard!" Gouki slapped down a perfect guard, causing Shark to smirk. "I was betting on that. Now I've made you drop 2 cards from your hand. There's no way you can guard against my rearguard!" Shark reveals his first drive check. On his second one, the room sees a flash of yellow as Gouki groans from across the table. "As I expected. I apply this critical trigger all onto my Big Jaws rearguard. Now then! Big Jaws! Attack with a boost from Shocktopus! I counterblast 1! Thanks to Big Jaws, one of your rearguards is incapable of intercepting which means there's no way you can stop this attack from hitting!"

"You're incredibly strong," Gouki praises as he flipped the last two damage checks into his damage zone. Even if he had pulled a heal trigger on the first check, he would have lost from the second. The room is stunned into silence as everyone stares at the mysterious boy.

"Great job, Shark! Not that I expect any less of you," Yuma shouts as he breaks the silence. He runs over to the other boy. However, many of the other people start getting close to Shark in efforts to pry answers from him or challenge him to a battle. Shark glares at everyone around him, not interested in any more cardfights. He grabs Yuma and starts dragging him outside.

"Aichi! Come on," Yuma calls as he follows Shark.

"Give them room, guys! It looks like they need to catch up!" Gouki commands as he stood in front of the mob. Gouki begins making his way outside of the store and Aichi follows.

"Heya! Let me introduce you to one of my buddies! This guy here is Shark," Yuma introduces as he pushes Aichi in front of him. Shark ignores the bluenette and focuses all his attention on Yuma.

"You!" He says, roughly grabbing Yuma's collar and bringing him closer. Aichi feels a cold shiver run down his spine as he notices the anger in the boy's cold, blue eyes. He resists the urge to run away from the boy and tries to find his voice to speak on Yuma's behalf. However, Gouki steps in to provide assistance.

"What's wrong?" Gouki asks as he prepares to separate the two boys, believing a fist fight is about to break out.

"Don't worry about it, Mr. Pirate! Shark's always like this," Yuma says with his silly grin still present on his face. Gouki and Aichi both relax a little upon hearing this but both still expect trouble.

"Do you mind telling me what happened?" The voice Shark uses is slow, choppy, and quiet. Aichi once again feels himself shiver in fear and apprehension. It sounds like Shark was just one step away from cracking.

"Whaddya mean?" Yuma asks. Aichi resists the urge to slap himself in the face.

"I mean...how I – we – left Heartland and ended up in this place?" Yuma's face twists into one of understanding before he gives a shrug. "What!? How could you not know! I run after you, watching you get pulled into some strange glowing circle and then the next thing I know I wake up sniffing concrete! What happened to us? Where did Duel Monsters go? Since when was vanguard, a game I've never even heard of before, so popular?"

"I can't answer that, Shark. I'm just as lost as you are." Shark's grip on Yuma's collar loosens as he finishes his onslaught of questions. "But if you're here," Yuma continues, "it must mean Kaito's here too."

"Yeah. They were caught up in that blasted circle too. No thanks to you," Shark adds with a venomous glare at Yuma. "Do...is Astral here? I need to talk to him."

"Of course I'm here," Astral says as he comes out of his key.

"Astral? You mean you can see him?" Aichi asks, forgetting his slight fear in his curiosity. Maybe these two broke out of a mental hospital somewhere? How could two people see the same invisible spirit? But that still doesn't explain their mysterious clans.

"Sorry, Yuma! I forgot we were in company," Shark apologizes as his widened eyes stare at Aichi and Gouki. Gouki only shifts his head in confusion.

"Don't worry about it! Aichi here already knows the story. And Gouki's a good friend of him so I guess it's cool if he knows about it too," Yuma says.

"Okay. Have you played vanguard yet? Have you looked at your cards?"

"Yeah. They all turned into vanguard cards."

"You too? It happened to my own cards. I guess we can assume Kaito's cards have also been transformed. Do you still have all your numbers?" Aichi' snaps to attention upon hearing Shark mention the numbers. He is extremely intrigued in finding out more about the numbers and their strength.

"Yeah. I've already used Hope and Shock Master," Yuma tells his friend.

"Okay, perfect. You've already played this game. My number also turned into a unit. But that doesn't matter. We need to find a way back to Heartland." Both boys turn silent as they stare at a place in the air. Gouki begins thinking both boys have completely lost it, unable to keep up with their conversation about numbers. They can't be the same numbers he's thinking about, can they be? Aichi understands why they stopped talking, however.

"They're talking to Astral," he says softly in astonishment. Gouki, however, still catches what Aichi says.

"Astral? I don't see anyone there," Gouki says, rubbing his eyes.

"It's a long story, Gouki. I'll have to tell you later."

"That is a good point. Fine then. We'll search for Kaito and his robot, and then we'll find a way back home. And we'll search for the numbers along the way, although if things go the way they have in the past, I'm sure the numbers will come to find us." Shark says with finality. Aichi flinches as the boy turns to look at Aichi. "Take me to Cardfight Capital. Yuma said there's strong players there and maybe we can get a better idea of where to find what we need."

"Follow me!" The loud red-horned boy says as he runs down the sidewalk.

"I'll stay here, Aichi. Make sure to tell me what's up later, k?" Gouki says as he heads back inside.

"I will!" Aichi calls back. He runs to catch up with the other two boys.

"Syllables, huh? Suits you. Mine is _Calamitous Tempest. _According to Gouki, my clan comes from Magallicana. What about that other guy? Aichi, was it?" Shark turns to look over Aichi.

"M-me? I p-play Ro – I mean, Gold Paladins," Aichi said, his old stutter returning as he watches Shark's harsh eyes bore into his own. Shark turns back to Yuma, ignoring him for the moment. Aichi lets loose a sigh of relief. Soon the three boys walk into Cardfight Capital.

"Good evening, Misaki!" Yuma says as he walks in. "This is one of my good pals!" He points at the boy beside him. Misaki quickly takes in his details before greeting him.

"Welcome to Cardfight Capital. This is your first time here, isn't it? My name's Tokura Misaki."

"Name's Shark." He matches Misaki's piercing gaze with his own, refusing to be outdone by the silver-haired girl. "Know any good players? Or is this place a waste of my time?" He asks, hoping to anger the girl. He has nothing against the girl, really, but it's just a way of blowing off some stress. After all, he couldn't use Yuma because he'd just end up angrier, and the blue-haired girl he came with looked about ready to melt into the floor when he asked her a question earlier.

"Well, Aichi's a pretty strong fighter. Are you a new fighter? He won nationals a while back," Misaki informed him.

"Really? This girl? She doesn't look very strong," Shark says as he glares at Aichi once more. "Duel me," he demands.

"Misaki, S-s-shark came from the same place Yuma came from," Aichi says, trying to ignore the ice-cold stare directed his way. He also says it to get Shark's attention off him. So long as he can get the other boy to stare at someone else, he is willing to let Shark's mistake about his gender go unfixed. Misaki's eyes widen as she looks back at the purple-head in front of her before nodding in understanding.

"I suppose you're not an ordinary newbie, then. If you want a real challenge, head for that table back there," Misaki points. Aichi feels his heart skip a beat as he realizes just where Misaki is sending Shark. The other boy simply nods before immediately heading for the table. Yuma follows Shark, unable to resist the urge to see his friend in battle once more. Although this is a different game from Duel Monsters, Yuma knows he would be a clever and powerful player. It is just the kind of person Shark constantly proves himself to be. Aichi heads towards the table where three of his friends are sitting.

"Is there anyone strong at this table? I need a challenge," Shark asks. He isn't fighting just for the sake of it. He wants to properly analyze his skill level and accurately judge just where he stands as a fighter in this strange new world.

"Strong? You're looking at the strongest fighter on this planet!" Kamui brags as he acknowledges the boy. "You don't know what you're getting yourself into!" Kai merely scoffs and Miwa lets out a laugh.

"This guy is a national contender. And he's been selected to become an international contender too. That plenty strong enough for you?" Miwa explains. "Tell you what. You beat me in a cardfight and I'll tell ya if you're strong enough to stand a chance against him," Miwa challenges the newcomer.

"I'll take you on anytime," Shark responds, not one to back down from a challenge.

The two move to a standing table and the rest of the table follows except Kai. Aichi attempts to get Kai to pay attention to the game but he refuses to move. Giving up, Aichi goes over to watch the game. Both players shuffle their deck after setting their starting vanguard face down on the field. They draw their hands, mulligan, and then shuffle and cut their decks.

"Die roll to decide who starts. Higher number gets first," Miwa states as he rolls a 4.

"No problem." Shark rolls a 3.

"Suppose that means I'm starting. Very well then. Stand up, vanguard!"

"Stand!"

* * *

**Is anyone else excited for the new Vanguard cards coming out? I'm not talking about Platina Ezel or the other set 9 crossrides. The only good ones are the crossrides for Aqua Force and Nova Grappler anyway. I'm talking about the Breakrides that are going to soon make their appearance in the English game!**

I plan on playing Genesis as soon as possible. A deck that is made up of girls and generates sick advantage? Yes please.

**On another note, I need help converting Kaito's deck. Galaxy Eyes and Neo-Galaxy were easy enough to translate to Vanguard, but others are proving difficult. I want it to remain true enough to Kaito's playstyle without being broken / underpowered. **

**As always, thanks for reviewing. **


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